Wall Street Rebounds Strongly After 3-Day Slump

On Thursday, U.S. stock markets experienced a rise after a period of stagnation over the past three days. Early trading saw the S&P 500 increase by 0.6%, marking its potential first gain after reaching a record high last Thursday. Since then, the index’s changes have been minor.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average saw a notable rise of 307 points, or 0.8%, at 9:40 a.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite experienced a 0.3% increase.

Among the noteworthy movers was Trump Media & Technology Group, whose shares surged by 18.6%. Despite the financial losses of its Truth Social platform, the company’s stock has escalated sharply, driven by supporters of the former President Donald Trump.

Pharmaceutical giant Merck also saw its shares rise by 4.9% following the federal approval of its Winrevair treatment for a rare lung condition known as pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Robinhood Markets enjoyed a 3.5% uptick after announcing its new credit card exclusively for its Gold subscription members, among other product launches.

Conversely, Carnival experienced a 3.3% decline in its stock despite reporting a smaller-than-expected loss for its recent quarter.

GameStop’s stock also fell post-reporting quarterly results that exceeded analysts’ expectations, known for its status as a leading “meme stock” with price movements often driven by retail investor sentiment rather than company fundamentals.

In the bond market, Treasury yields remained fairly stable with a slight decrease in the yield on the 10-year Treasury to 4.22% from 4.23%.

Attention in the bond market shifts towards Friday’s anticipated update on U.S. consumer spending and the Fed’s preferred inflation measure. However, with the U.S. bond and stock markets closed for Good Friday, Thursday might see heightened trading activity in anticipation. This day also marks the end of the month and the first quarter, potentially influencing market dynamics.

The S&P 500 is poised for a fifth consecutive month of gains, buoyed by a resilient U.S. economy despite high interest rates aimed at curbing inflation. With inflation showing signs of easing from its peak, expectations are growing for the Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates starting in June.

Meanwhile, global stock markets showed mixed results, with Chinese stocks among the laggards despite reassurances from China’s central bank governor about the property sector’s recovery and limited impact from developer defaults. Hong Kong and Shanghai stocks saw declines of 1.4% and 1.3%, respectively.